Cleveland Cavaliers: 3 players to watch in the 2018 NCAA Tournament

1. Marvin Bagley III

Bagley would be the ultimate get for the Cavaliers. Not only does a fill a specific need, providing low-post scoring, but he is perfect player to build a franchise around.

Hyped from a young age, the freshman is torching competition just like he did in high school. His numbers are bonkers: 21.1 points and 11.5 rebounds per game while shooting 60.5 percent from the field. He has range, drilling 1.2 3-pointers per 100 possessions.

Let’s compare that to other successful one-and-dones. Karly Anthony-Towns averaged just 10.3 points per game on 56.6 percent shooting his freshman year at Kentucky. Anthony Davis scored 14.2 points per game while averaging 10.4 rebounds and shooting 65.3 percent from the field during his first year.

Rarely is a freshman post player so developed offensively. You have to flip the record books all the way back 2006-07 to find the last freshman forward who averaged more than 21 points per game for a major program. Some guy named Kevin Durant accomplished the feat for Texas.

Scouts aptly compare him to Chris Bosh, a player perfectly suited to LeBron’s style. Like Bosh, Bagley is potent in the paint, forcing big men to stay on him as opposed to crashing a penetrating LeBron. He’s also a marksman from the corner, a steady option for drive-and-kicks.

I think Bagley has the potential to surpass Bosh. While CB4’s mid-range game was smoother than almost any player his size, he didn’t possess the frame to control the paint. Bagley does and will likely only get stronger, considering his build and youth for his class. He doesn’t turn 19 for another two months.

Next: 2018 NBA Draft - Early March Mock Draft

Most drafts, Bagley has no shot of making it out of the top two. But with a top-heavy class, Bagley is falling to fourth or fifth in some mocks. If Cleveland lands him, the trade of Kyrie Irving was well worth it.